Flattening dune may lead to federal environmental case

Michigan man could face charges for using Lake Michigan beach for recreation.

Michigan man could face charges for using Lake Michigan beach for recreation.

June 12, 2007

MUSKEGON, Mich. (AP) -- A western Michigan man could face federal charges for flattening a 100-foot stretch of Lake Michigan beach front and using it as a family recreation area. John Halland of Fruitland Township said his family uses the area to play volleyball, football and Frisbee. But some of his neighbors have cried foul. And now the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will determine whether the volleyball court and two paths from Halland's lakefront home warrant criminal charges. "Our primary concern is what appears to be damage to the dunes and the lakeshore environment," Pat Donahue, who lives next to Halland, told The Muskegon Chronicle for a story Friday. Halland said he hasn't broken any rules, and blames the dispute on nosy neighbors. "It's not like I went about this haphazardly," Halland said. "I did get a soil erosion permit from the county, and I put up the silt fence that was required. It's not in a critical dune, so I didn't need a state permit." According to the Army Corps, Halland's only potential infractions include failing to get a federal permit before moving sand next to a federally regulated, navigable waterway, and placing sand too close to Lake Michigan. "The dune swale complex was leveled and filled on site without prior authorization from the Department of the Army," said Robert M. Tucker, chief of enforcement in the Corps' Detroit office. Halland said he kept all transferred sand at least 56 feet away from the high-water mark. He said topographical surveys of the site showed that he did not violate any laws. Jamie Cross, a spokeswoman for the Alliance for the Great Lakes, said Halland's activity could erode the dune. "It's a high-risk erosion area," Cross said. "Bulldozing the vegetation exposes the sand and contributes to erosion of the dune." Halland said he is being persecuted because he once tried to build several homes on his property. After that project was defeated, he flattened part of his beach to create the volleyball court. "I think what it comes down to is that I'm enjoying my property in a way that other people are not used to and that upsets them," Halland said. Donahue said that's not the point. He said damage to the dune is the main concern. "I think it's safe to say that if anybody did this in front of their house it would have had the same reaction in the neighborhood," Donahue said.